


The Bear of MACUSA

by Beautiful_Doom



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies)
Genre: Graves is a bear animagus, He can't always control it, It's cute sometimes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-21
Updated: 2018-03-21
Packaged: 2019-04-05 14:13:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14046027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beautiful_Doom/pseuds/Beautiful_Doom
Summary: A series of drabbles about Bear!Graves.





	1. Bear Boss

Theseus had been the one to warn him. He’d told Newt that Grindelwald had done something awful to Graves that was making recovery very difficult. Out of respect for his friend, Theseus didn’t give many details.

“When he’s ready, he’ll tell you. Or you’ll just see it yourself.”

Newt had been understanding, willing to give Graves distance and privacy as the man recovered. It wasn’t hard as Newt had already been traveling in another country and was nowhere near the other. Theseus was kind enough to keep him updated, telling him about Graves coming back to work and looking better. Even if Newt had never met the man, he still worried over the Director. He couldn’t imagine what kind of tortures Grindelwald had devised.

It was a month after Graves’s return that Newt decided to return as well. Theseus had told him that Graves had adjusted well enough, though he still had trouble every now and then. The Director had been asking to meet Newt, wanting to thank the other for his help. Newt had at first decided to just send a letter, but Theseus had convinced him to accept the thanks in person.

And so Newt had arranged travel back to America.

Picquery had granted him special permits for his case, provided he gave her an inventory of every beast within it. Newt luckily always kept one on hand and had only been too happy to pass it over. The resulting stack of permits had been very big, but everything was in order. 

Tina had been the one to bring him into MACUSA. Again. She was leading him down the halls to the bullpen when Newt had stopped still in his tracks. Tina had paused in her talk about Queenie and Jacob and turned to see what he was looking at.

It was… a grizzly bear.

Huge, covered in thick fur, and stalking down the hall like a bear on a mission. Newt looked equal parts excited and confused at the beast when it stopped next to him. The bear came up to his chest and would have towered over him if it stood on two legs. The bear sniffed him and made a few low rumbles before walking off again, looking as it if belonged there.

“Are bears like that native to New York?” Newt asked Tina. The auror sighed fondly, knowing Newt would love to study the bear.

“It’s a special case,” she said. “I’m sure you’ll find out later.”

And Newt did.

He’d been asked to accompany a group of aurors to apprehend a group of smugglers. Director Graves was leading them and he’d already gone ahead to secure the area for Newt. When Newt arrived he heard the scene before he saw it. It sounded like a bear roaring.

As he walked over, he saw a group of aurors binding the smugglers while the same bear Newt had seen before growled and roared at them nearby. The smugglers were crying and begging the aurors to get them away from the bear, which made the MACUSA group laugh. After hauling them off, Tina turned to the bear and smiled. 

“Great job, Boss. I brought Newt like you asked. He’ll be the one to help us with the.. cargo.”

“Boss?” Newt repeated, looking at Tina oddly. But then the bear began to shift and change, revealing the form of none other than Percival Graves. Newt looked on in shock as the Director approached him.

“Wonderful to meet you as a human this time,” he said, shaking Newt’s hand. “I’m Director Percival Graves. You must be Mr. Scamander.”


	2. Bears and Nifflers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hugo the Niffler meets the bear

The Niffler had gotten out. Again. Newt cursed softly as he went searching through the halls of MACUSA. 

“Hugo?” He called. “Hugo? Hugo, are you here?” He made sure to not to draw too much attention lest someone find out he had lost a beast. Picquery had been very adamant that Newt not lose any.

“Hugo? Hugo?” Newt gasped and froze when he heard a distant roar. That was Mr. Graves. Well, it was his bear form, Newt could tell. Oh no. A small creature running around with a predator in the same area?

That couldn’t be good.

Newt flinched when a door opened and the bear himself came lumbering out. He noticed something black, fuzzy, and wriggling clamped in the bear’s jaw. He gasped in distress when he saw it was his Niffler. 

He stayed frozen as the bear approached him and stood on two legs. Just as Newt had suspected, the bear towered over him. Newt swallowed heavily, nervous for Hugo, not himself. Thankfully the bear spat the Niffler into Newt’s scrambling arms. 

Hugo quickly burrowed into Newt’s coat, seeking shelter, as he made loud squeaks of fear. The bear plopped back onto all fours and gave Newt a look that could have passed for a human glare. With a few snuffles and growls, the bear left again, disappearing back into the room he had come out of.

Newt sighed in relief and couldn’t help but feel excited at seeing Graves in his bear form again. He really was a magnificent specimen.

His excitement quickly faded when Hugo's terror hit a peak and the Niffler peed on him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment if you like it so far. Comments give me life.


	3. Hibernation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Newt learns about Graves's winter activities

Newt was very good at observing and noticing small differences. He needed to after all, with his line of work. He needed to be able to see and figure out changes in his beasts to determine illness or injury. He was so good at it, he often observed the people around him without meaning to.

This is how he noticed the changes in Percival Graves when the winter months came.

He wasn’t being impersonated again, thank goodness. No, instead something else was happening. Newt noticed that some of his clothes had begun to look tighter on him more than usual. After a few days of that, Graves came back in with clothes that fit better. He had put on some bulk and wore bigger clothes to account for it.

This caught Newt’s curiosity. From what he’d heard, Graves took his health semi seriously. He would go whole days on nothing but coffee and pastries, but he always worked off whatever sugars and calories he had ingested. As the Director of Magical Security he had to stay in shape for the battles he fought and criminals he chased down.

But now it seemed he was gaining weight and keeping it as opposed to working it off. 

Newt could tell the others noticed, but no one said a thing. That was something else that was odd. Newt knew that Graves held no ill will towards people who mentioned something about his looks or health. Just the other day, someone pointed out some hairs that had fallen free from Graves’s pomade and the man had simply adjusted them and then went on his way.

Another thing Newt noticed was that Graves had been moving a bit slower. He looked groggy and sluggish. He hadn’t gained enough weight for that to be the reason, so Newt reasoned it had to be something else. Again, others noticed, but no one said anything.

Yet another thing… were the snacks. Graves had begun snacking much more often, which probably caused the weight gain in the first place. The aurors not only noticed, but encouraged it. They gave Graves cookies, mixed nuts, french fries, potato chips, pastries, and even whole meals made of meats and vegetables. They all seemed to love it when he took their food, skipping back to their desks with happiness.

Then came the naps.

Graves had begun to nap in his office, come in later, or leave earlier. The aurors made sure everyone knew when he was napping so that no one would disturb him. They gave Graves pillows and blankets, far more than one man needed.

Now Newt was worried. Was Graves ill in some way? He knew the aurors always took care of their boss as much as they could, but this was a bit excessive. What was the big secret everyone but him seemed to know? He asked them, and it was Tina who explained.

“Well… you know how Graves is a bear animagus? Have you ever heard the theories that animaguses often exhibit the behaviors of their animal counterparts? Well, for Mr. Graves… he…”

“He hibernates,” it was an older auror named Phillips who answered for her. “See, every winter since he became an animagus, the bear side of him gets that instinct to hibernate and it carries over to the boss. He eats more, gains weight, gets sleepy more often, he even builds a nest on the couch in his office and sleeps there. And we, being the amazing employees that we are, help him with those instincts. He’s a bit embarrassed by it, and won’t do anything to ‘give in to the beast’ as he puts it. So we do it for him. We give him food, give him blankets, let him have his naps, whatever he needs.”

Newt was touched at the concern the aurors showed Graves. It really was like the auror department was one big family. In fact, as Phillips went on to say, they often warned the new aurors about these months and warned them to never imply that Graves was getting fat or lazy lest they get hexed by everyone else. So far only three had not listened and had been quickly hexed and booted the same day.

“You wouldn’t mind if I just take a look at him, would you?” Newt asked. “I’m just worried is all.”

The aurors all looked at each other and shrugged. 

“Hey, you’re a big boy,” said Phillips. “You do what you want. Just be careful not to wake him. He gets a bit… GRUMPY… if you wake him up.”

Newt assured them he would not wake Graves up. He quietly opened the door to the other’s office and was immediately hit by a sound that had to have been silenced with a muffling charm. 

Snoring.

But it was snoring that was only partially human. It was loud, it was deep, and it sounded more like a growl. It was coming from beneath a pile of pillows and blankets on the black leather couch that sat off to the side. A hand dangled from the nest, fingers brushing the floor. A bag of peanuts had spilled out beneath it.

Newt carefully walked over and gently peeled the blankets back. He was greeted by Graves’s face, drool running from his open mouth and onto the leather of the couch. Newt stifled a snort and quickly did a diagnostic spell. It came up clean and with no problems, so he deemed Graves in good health and left.

The aurors were happy to hear that Graves was doing just fine, and waved Newt off as he left. Had Newt stayed, he would have seen Graves leave his office, hair in wild disarray and quietly munching on the bag of peanuts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment if you like it so far. Comments give me life.


	4. Honey Buns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graves loves those honey pastries

As much as Newt loves Jacob’s creature confections, there’s another thing Jacob makes that Newt cannot get enough of: honey glazed powdered sugared buns. This particular pastry is the one that always makes Newt unashamedly lick his fingers clean at the end no matter where he is. The bun is sticky, but crisp and flaky, and Newt buys them by the bagful if only to sate his own appetite.

It was when he was visiting Tina at MACUSA, and of course reporting for another assignment, that he had a fresh bag that filled the halls with an aroma of sugar. He’d just pulled one out to eat when he noticed Percival Graves heading his way from the other end of the hall. He was holding his bun and gave Graves a nod in greeting when something suddenly flashed next to him. He paused, startled at the sudden flash of magic, but was quick to see nothing harmful had happened. He turned back to eat his bun only to notice a large bite had already been taken. He was momentarily confused when he remembered Graves. He looked back to see the other man trying and failing to walk quickly and inconspicuously, hunched over slightly.

Newt was quick to discover that Graves liked honey buns, but his bear side went crazy for them. All it took was the smell of them to make Graves perk up and look around to find them. Newt continued to bring them in and share them with the aurors, watching Graves squirm with his manners that forbade him to ask for one. Of course he had to wait for Newt to offer one as all proper gentlemen did.

Newt wanted to see just how much control Graves had over his bear side, always offering buns to the aurors while Graves was gone or in his office. So far, Graves had kept his paws off them, and the aurors enjoyed them. 

But then one day, Newt decided to up his game. He left a bag of buns on Tina’s desk, and then offered to take her out for lunch since she had been stuck inside all week. When they came back, Newt saw the bag was torn open with distinct teeth and claw marks, and the desk was smeared with crumbs and honey glaze. Newt helped Tina clean up, and then went to Graves’s office.

Hearing snoring on the other side, he quietly entered and saw the man once again napping in his couch nest. The hand that was exposed had powdered sugar clinging to the fingers, and when Newt checked Graves’s face, he saw smears of honey and crumbs. Stifling a laugh, Newt left the office.

Tina and the aurors knew exactly what had happened to the bag of buns. When Graves came in the next day, he saw the aurors had bought him his own bag and left it on his desk.

The bag lasted exactly three minutes as a fuzzy maw devoured them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment if you like it so far. Comments give me life.


End file.
